X23,5
by Mystic Midnight
Summary: Laura has a twin sister, X23.5, who was just resently found out. With S.H.I.E.L.D. on this new girls tail, how will Logan and Laura react to her. How will the rest of the institute react? Will she fit in?
1. Not Another One!

Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men.

Three months had passed since the downfall of Apocalypse and the institute seemed somewhat peaceful as Charles Xavier wheeled himself down one of the mansion's many corridors. The only disturbance was the erratic snowball fight out on the grounds. Small explosions could be heard from outside and as Professor X glanced out the window, down on the scene, a rather large ice beam streamed by. Xavier could only chuckle to himself. Most of the students seemed to be rather enjoying themselves this Christmas holiday, but his eyes fell upon one lonely figure observing the battle from afar under a large tree. One lonely figure named Laura, formally known as X23.

"Mercy! Mercy! Stop!" Bobby cried from behind a rather large snow pile. Once again the others had ganged up on him. Ray, Tabitha, Sam, Alex, Jubilee, Amara, and others used their powers and own physical strength to bombard his icy fort with snowballs, fire, small bombs, and beams of energy; anything to knock it down. Just as Xavier made his way onto the veranda the fort finally collapsed and Bobby's cry of surprise could be heard from underneath it. He would be joining the rest of the X-Men: Ororo, Scott, Logan, Hank, Piotr, and Jean.

"Logan, if I may have a word with you," said the professor. Wolverine shrugged and followed him back though the front doors. Laura watched them leave and thought about trying to follow them, but then she remembered Logan would smell her and the professor probably already knew she considered doing this so she stayed behind and watched Bobby's comeback.

"So whatcha got Charles?" Logan asked in his usual gruff voice. Xavier continued down the hall so he continued after him toward the ground floor elevator.

"Laura seems to be coping with the institute quite well."

"Yeah, but sometimes I wished she would just act like a kid should every now and then. You know? Just have some fun." Logan said half-heartedly.

"Perhaps with time, but that is not the reason I called you back here."

"So what's the reason?"

"Hopefully a new student." He said as the elevator doors slide apart. They stepped in and the doors closed back to their original positions. "Cerebro, please." Logan pressed the base floor button. "Thank you. I will be going visit a young girl in Texas. You are welcome to come if you like."

"You don't make many house calls, Chuck. What makes her so special?" The doors once again slide open to reveal the catwalk to the immensely powerful computer, Cerebro.

"For one, S.H.I.E.L.D. is looking for her."

"What?"

"You're friend, Nick Fury was surprisingly kind and understanding enough to send me these files." Xavier placed the helmet on top of this head and a large screen appeared in front of them with a young girls smiling picture. She had long black wavy hair, large brown eyes, a dazzling smile and couldn't be any younger then 16.

Logan stared at the picture for a moment before saying, "She looks like Laura." He was amazed by the similarity in this girl and his clone whom he'd come to call, daughter. Although this girl seemed to be taller and older, they had the same build, same oval face, nose, even the same eye shape. The only difference was the hair and eyes.

"Actually, I think she looks more like you." The professor had a small smile playing across his face.

"What are you saying Charles?" 

"Laura has a twin; not exactly identical, but a twin sister nonetheless. She is known as X23.5. These documents recovered by Fury at the destroyed Hydra airbase tell how this miraculous predicament occurred." Logan listened intently. "Evidently the embryo cell split, as is what happens when there are twins. This was a mistake, of course, but the good Dr. Risman continued with the development. Once the two girls were born Laura's X-gene was dominate while the other's lay dormant. Because of this and the fact that the girls might have a special bond they sent this girl to an adoption agency in Texas. The family that adopted her, Mr. and Mrs. Hendrix, coincidentally named her Lena." Xavier gave Logan some time to gather his thoughts.

"_There was another,"_ he thought. _"Another clone; another…daughter?"_ All Logan could do was stare at Lena's face and almost see himself.

"Her dormant X-gene is beginning to break through, though. And I fear that if her mutant gene grows any further without our supervision S.H.I.E.L.D. will find her in no time. My worst fear is that if they find her they might want to try the Weapon X project on her."

Logan growled in furry at this. "When do we leave?"

"As soon as possible."

Well there's chapter one. If you have the time let me know what you think and if I can improve it in any way.

By the way, I promise the other chapters will be way longer then this. This was just to get things kicked off.


	2. Lena Hendrix

**So for the long wait. I should have more time to write next week when SCHOOL'S OUT FOR SUMMER!!**

**But this chapter is **_**VERY**_** important to the plot, so please pay attention and R&R if you got the time. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men or Timberline Boots.**

After Logan left Cerebro, he quickly made his way to his room to prepare for the trip down south. He felt so guilty that Laura had to go through the Weapon X project, but he would make sure that this girl, Lena, would not. No matter what happened that girl was coming to the mansion whether she liked it or not. It would be for her own good.

"In a hurry there, Logan?" Scott's voice shook him out of his thoughts, but he didn't answer or even stop. The sooner they where in Texas the better. Scott was left standing in the corridor alone with a confused expression on his face wondering what could be eating at Logan now.

As Logan marched further down the corridor, Laura's sent invaded his nostrils. Sure enough she came around the corner staring straight into his eyes with her normal glare. "What's wrong?" she asked forcefully.

"Nothing, I just have to make a trip down to Texas."

"I want to come with you," she requested hastily, her green eyes piercing his brown.

"No," he said shaking his head. "You stay here with the others and try to have fun before school starts." He walked by her hoping she wouldn't say anything else about the matter but it didn't work.

"I want to come with you," she repeated harshly. "I have to do something else besides watch a stupid snow fight!" Logan turned back around to look at her.

"Listen, ki—Laura." He had been trying to break the habit of calling her kid, since it evidently offended her in some way. "You just can't come this time. You have to stay here. I'll be back in a day or so." As he turned to walk further away he called back, "And don't even think about sneaking on the X-Jet."

Laura crossed her arms and turned her own back to Logan walking in the opposite direction.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Somewhere in Texas near San Antonio, a black haired, brown eyed girl was in her bedroom pulling on her camouflage clothes and equipment, getting ready to go deer hunting with her father and four brothers. She was rummaging around in her closet for her rifle when there was a knock on her bedroom door. She had a small room with white walls decorated all sorts of trophies, medals and awards, a full sized bed, and a portable keyboard in the corner. Everything was partly organized but for of a few stray clothes in the floor and an un-made bed, but other than that the room fairly clean.

"Lena, we're leavin' in five minuets." Came a seasoned, masculine voice from the other side.

"I'm comin'! Just hang on a sec so I can get my boots on," she called back sitting down on the floor to pull on a pair of muddy, brown, Timberline Boots she had pulled out of the closet along with her deer rifle.

"Five minuets!" Came the voice again.

"Done!" she shouted, throwing her hands in the air. Picking up the firearm, she sprang to her feet and swung the door open following her father down an upstairs hallway. After she had caught up to him she looked up to him and asked, "Where're we goin'?" She wasn't very short, but she wasn't very tall either. Her head just reached her father's shoulders who was five feet and twelve inches tall; she being five feet and five inches.

"The woods next to your brother's house. He told me he done saw five bucks in the back yard." They began to walk down the stairs and on to the bottom floor.

"Again? Dad, we done hunted there six times this month. Can't we go somewhere else?"

"If that's where the bucks are, then that's where we're goin'. Of course you could always stay here and help your mom with the house." He pointed a thumb behind him. He had a bandage on one side of his face and underneath his long sleeve shirt and pants where many more bandages.

She looked past him and into the kitchen where her mom, a robust and aged woman, was washing dishes. "I'll go."

"Good. Your brothers are waitin' in the truck." And with that she ran out the door. As she left her dad turned to the woman in the kitchen and said, "We're gone, hun."

"Henry, wait a minute. A man called about Lena's…problem." The man's eye's went wide at what his told him next.

Lena ran out and jumped over the two steps that connected to the ground and ran towards the side of the house where the dirt driveway ran along. The house wasn't very big, but it wasn't small either. It had two floors, plus an attic, about three hundred feet in length from a frontal view, and two hundred from the side. It was just a typical wooden, white farm house that was in much need of repainting and new shingles. As she turned the corner she faced her four older brothers all who were only a year or two apart in age of each other. Two of them where sitting at a small outside table cleaning their rifles, and the other two where kicked back in the bed of a very old Chevrolet truck.

Running over, she hopped in the back of the truck with her brothers, Rodney and Michel.

"Hey, there's Tator Tot," said Rodney who was the second oldest, 28, and the tallest of the four. He, like all his brothers, had bright blue eyes and dark brown hair, he's also Lena's favorite brother. When ever Michel gave her a hard time, Rodney would be the one to shut him up. The two of them even had little names for each other. "Did you finally decide to come down from your tower princess?"

"Just in time to see your ugly face, Rim Rod." She playfully glared at him and then crossed her eyes to make him laugh, but instead of Rodney, it was Michel to spoke next.

"Hold that pose. Maybe they'll get stuck like that then you can't come." He laughed to himself a little before Rodney slapped him across the back of his head. "What was that for?" He said, rubbing the assaulted lump.

"Do you wanna lose our good luck charm? You know that ever since she stared huntin' with us we ain't come back empty handed once."

"Whatever." Michel, a college drop out, was the youngest of the four brothers, 26, and used to be the one who had all the attention, but when Lena was adopted all that changed. The ten year old mind of Michel couldn't handle a little baby girl having his mother and father's complete attention then and he couldn't handle it now. He and Rodney used to be best friends, not just brothers, but she took that too. Now all he got from Rodney were bumps and bruises. The family's Christian background always taught him that jealousy was a sin and led to evil, but in his mind Lena was a thief, and stealing is also a sin. He didn't know if Lena herself even realized what she had done to him.

The other two brothers, on the other hand, Luke, and DJ, were indifferent to her. DJ, the third oldest, would help her with her homework, and Luke, the oldest, would hardly ever be around. He was in college when Lena came along and was now a lawyer. DJ, who was perusing his doctorate degree at a Tech College, was the smartest of the four and would call every now and then.

But now they were all home for Christmas. It hardly ever snowed so it was the perfect time for deer hunting. After all five of them where in the truck with Luke in the front their father finally walked around the corner, but seemed very disturbed. He opened the truck door and sat behind the wheel, fumbling with the keys in shaky hands.

"Dad?" came Luke's voice. "Are you all right?"

"I—I think maybe you should drive," he said dropping the keys into the seat and got out of the truck making his way around the front to the other side. They pulled out of the driveway with Luke driving beside his shaking father.

"Dad? Are you sure you want to go hunting? You seem a little unnerved." Luke asked.

"I'm fine, boy."

Luke didn't trust his father's judgment about his health and regretted obeying him to keep going. He would just have to keep a very close eye on him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Under stealth mode, the invisible X-Jet landed very roughly in one of the Hendrix's empty corn fields. Professor Xavier gave Logan a concerned look. "Logan, are you alright?"

"Yeah…," said Logan with a groan. "Just a little shaky I guess."

"I hope you are able to drive the Rolls Royce to the Hendrix farm."

Logan dropped the hatch and opened the back door of the extended Rolls Royce for Charles and he rolled himself inside. Logan drove them down a small paved road next to the field that led to the Hendrix's driveway. Five minutes later they where pulling up to the Hendrix's house and a woman that Logan assumed was Lena's adopted mother walked out on to the porch to greet them. Her greeting though did not seem very warm. She seemed, instead, very nervous and agitated. When he stepped out of the car her facial expression showed her becoming even more unnerved at the sight of his gruff appearance. He made eye contact with her but he slowly turned around to open the back door for the professor. Professor Xavier rolled himself down the small ramp that Logan had placed down for him and faced the heavy woman before him.

"Well, Mrs. Hendrix. May we come in?"

Once inside Mrs. Hendrix led them into the living room where she sat down on the couch, Xavier, of course, sat in his wheel chair, and Logan stood beside him with his arms crossed over his chest. "Thank you for allowing us to come here Mrs. Hendrix. I would like you to tell me a few things about Lena if you like," said Xavier.

Mrs. Hendrix nodded a little and said, "Well, I don't really like to talk 'bout her less she be here. Right now her, my sons, and my husband, Henry, are out huntin'. I don't expect them to be back for a really long time, but I guess it won't hurt nuthin'. Well as you know we adopted her when she was 'bout five months old. We never planed on tellin' her, but we couldn't keep lyin' to her when she asked why we all had 'pretty blue eyes' and she had brown. And we told her and I told her that she has the prettiest eyes of anyone I know. Oh, you should've seen the way her eyes sparkled when she heard that. I'm sorry, I'm rambling. I'm sure you don't want to hear that. I don't get many visitors."

"Oh, please Mrs. Hen…"

"Please call me Betty."

"All right, Betty, this is very useful information. Please continue."

"Well, she's very athletic. She's not very good at softball, but she's one of the fastest runners on the team, and she's the captain of her high school volley ball team. Hardly anyone can pick up her serves. Henry and I are very proud of her. But I believe the reason you're here is to hear about this. I guess we started noticin'….changes about three months ago. She had a scar on her right knee from a surgery she had to have less than a year ago. She had had a four wheeler wreck that shattered her knee cap and tore nearly all the cartilage. I had never seen her in so much pain. They began the surgery a month later. The doctors said even with the surgery she'll never be able to play sports again. That news absolutely traumatized her. She didn't want to come out of her room and she would hardly ever eat. So I bought her one of those portable electric pianos and gave her one of the hymn books from the church and a piano lesson guide. Pretty soon we could hear that piano a goin'. My youngest son, Mikey, complained about it bein' so annoying and off key, but it was the most beautiful sound I ever heard. Slowly my daughter was comin' back. I'm sorry. I'm rambling again, but as time past she gained strength in her leg again and could walk, but never ran."

All through the woman's rambling, Logan listened intently. He listened and made mental notes about everything.

"Before we started noticing the…changes, Henry was in an accident. He was out bush hoggin' a field while me and Lena where inside shellin' peas. We were in the kitchen and she asked, 'Do you smell gas burnin'?', I said, 'No. Why?', she says, 'Dad's in trouble. I hear 'em screamin'!'. And I'll tell you that girl ran, she _ran_ out the door. I thought I'd never see her run again. She ran all the way to the field like I've never seen her ran before. I got myself in the truck and drove after her. I could see black smoke comin' from where Henry should've been and that was where she was headed. I caught up to her and she jumped in the back and we drove to Henry. When we got there the tractor had fallen on top of him and the gas had leaked out and caught on fire. Next thing I know, Lena's runnin' toward him. I'm screamin' and prayin' for her to come back."

Logan watched to woman wipe the tears off of her face. If he had been sitting he would've been on the edge of his seat about to fall on to the floor.

"I could just barely see the tractor tilt up a little then fall back to where it was. Then Lena was draggin' him out of the fire. He was unconscious and both of them had burns all over. I didn't know what to do, but I drove them both to the hospital. They bandaged them both up and put Henry in critical care. They both had second and third degree burns. A week and a half later, the doctors were completely blown away by this, Lena's burns had healed and the scar on her knee was gone! They performed x-rays and M.R.I.'s, her knee the burns everything was completely healed! That was all three months ago. They signed a release for her to play sports again. She and her team were so happy. We knew it was a miracle, but we had no idea it was a…a…."

"A mutation." Logan finished for her. After this the front door suddenly opened and banged against the wall. This caught everyone off guard, including Logan who had been listening so intently he hadn't been paying any attention to his surroundings. This sudden surge of adrenaline caused him to extend his adamantium claws.

He heard a voice say, "Lena, go call an ambulance!" A girl dressed in camo, he knew had to be Lena, ran through the door and into the kitchen followed by four men, two of which were carrying an older man, all were also dressed in camo. Logan retracted his claws as the boys lay the man on the couch after Betty got up.

"What happened?" Betty asked franticly.

The one who appeared to be the oldest said, "We don't know he just passed out.

While everyone was distracted with Henry on the couch Logan walked into the kitchen. He found Lena yelling into the phone. "Don't you put me on hold!" And with that she flung the phone into the wall. She turned around and looked him in the eye. She was even the same height as he is, thought Logan. "Who are you?" she asked with the anger still in her voice. She felt like she recognized him some how.

"Umm…well…" Logan started but the oldest one called from the couch.

"Lena, tell 'em never mind. He's going to be ok!" Lena looked back at Logan and hung up the phone. The two of them walked back into the living room.

The man on the couch kept saying, "I'm fine, I'm fine. Tell her to hang up that phone."

"I dun did. Dad is it your burns?" Lena squatted next to him.

He took her hand and said, "No, hun no. It's just… I can't hide anything from you can I so I'm just gonna tell you. Hun, you gotta go away for a while."

"Why? Where am I goin'?"

"Honey," said Betty. "You have to go with these gentlemen to New York, for a special place to protect you."

"Protect me?" she pulled her hand away from the man. "Protect me from what?" She hated it that her anger was still in her voice. She tried to calm it a little. "Why do I have to go?"

Xavier wheeled himself over. "This place is no longer safe for you. My name is Charles Xavier and this is Logan." Lena stared at Logan for a while, but forced herself to look back at Xavier. "I own an estate, a school, if you will, for gifted young people as yourself. It is to protect young mutants against those who would like to go by other methods."

"What do you mean by other methods?" asked Rodney.

"Rodney, it's not polite to interrupt the man," scolded Betty.

"It's quite all right, madam. For her, it will be to protect her from an organization that would like to use her talents as a weapon."

Upon hearing this Rodney stood up beside Lena and flung his arm around her. "Ain't nobody gonna hurt my little sister."

"That is what I'm hoping to accomplish…if she comes with us."

"Oh yeah, well how do know you're not part of this "organization"? Huh?"

"Rodney!" came his mother's voice.

"What? I'm serious. How do we not know?"

"Rodney!" Henry's face was strict. "She's goin' with them and there ain't no argument in it. Lena, go pack you things."

"No," she said suddenly. "I don't wanna leave. Dad, I'm captain this year. Don't make me leave."

"Darlin', your life is more important to me than volley ball. Now go pack."

Lena stomped up the stairs and slammed the door to her room. A few seconds later they could all hear the faint sound of a piano playing "I'll Fly Away".

**Well not very exciting this chapter. It's just to get the setting and story ready, but this chapter is very important for the plot so I hoped you paid attention. In the next chapter we leave for New York! Please review if you have the time! What y'all think really inspires me to write more!**


	3. Goodbyes

"I'll go talk to her

So I'm super sorry about the year long wait. I have no excuses other than I'm so glad to be done with high school and on my way to college. I _plan on_ finishing this story and have changed my mind a bit on where I want to take this so it should be interesting.

**Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men.**

"I'll go talk to her." Betty told her husband.

"Betty," Xavier started, "I would like to speak with her personally when she comes down."

Betty nodded and heaved herself up the stairs to Lena's room where forceful piano 'music' was being attempted. She opened Lena's door without knocking and just gazed at her adopted child for a few seconds before speaking. "You're gettin' better."

"I'm not tryin' to play well, just to think about all this." She stopped trying to play the notes and matched her mother's eyes. "How long will I have to go for?"

"I don't know. Think of it as goin' off to college early. When I talked to Professor Xavier on the phone, he said that you would go to Bayville High School and live in his mansion with other students who are more like you, you know, mutants."

"Mom, why me? Why did this—"

"Hun, I don't question God's plan, just ask for guidance."

"What if they laugh at me?"

"Now why would anyone laugh at my beautiful little girl?"

"What if they laugh at me and say that I talk funny?"

Betty chuckled a little at this. "Darlin', I'm willin' to bet that the more time you spend up there, the better your grammar will get. I mean, just look at Luke; he had one of the thickest Texas accents and then when he went off to law school it disappeared. You'll be fine." She embraced Lena in a hug, then walked over to the closet and pulled out some large suitcases. "Hun, Professor Xavier would like to talk to you for a minute. I'll get you started packin', so you can go talk." With a little hesitation Lena nodded and walked out.

There was no more room for persuasion; Lena knew she would have to go. When she came to the balcony of the stairs overlooking the living room where she had left everyone, she stood a little around the corner as to not be seen and to eavesdrop on the conversation below. She knew there had to be a few things that these men wouldn't say in front of her, things that would possibly make her change her mind.

The bald man in the wheel chair and the rough looking black haired man where talking to her father who was still sitting on the couch. Off to the side she only saw three of her brothers conversing with themselves. Michel seemed to be missing which was only typical of him, he only came out of his room for food, to go hunting, or if something concerned him, and this was none of the above.

Her 'mutation', as they called it, would normally come and go. She hoped the acute hearing thing was working. She tried to pin point on the conversation between the two men and her father. She could hear their hushed conversation clearly, which still surprised her a bit since she still wasn't used to all this.

"You're not who you've been saying you are, are you Mr. Hendrix?" The bald man inquired. What did he mean by that?

"How did you know?" He seemed more ashamed than surprised by the words of the professor. What's more, his southern accent was gone.

"Before I take on a student I want to know their parents personally and telepathically. I know you are retired, but it still puts you and your family at risk which is why there is no set time that Lena can return to you." "_Now I wouldn't say anymore aloud,_" Xavier told him telepathically, "_Lena is listening in and I don't think it best that she know of this just yet._"

"I understand." Her father stood up looking at the ground and said, "Lena, stop hiding and come down."

She poked around the corner and watched her father walk calmly into the kitchen with his head still hung down. She slowly descended the stairs, never taking her eyes off the two men. "Miss. Lena, come with us outside for a moment." Lena nodded and followed, thinking she had nothing else to lose; she had already lost her family so what was left? She followed them onto the front porch where they stopped. "Lena, are you prepared to make a decision?"

"Yes, sir. I'll go." She said solemnly. She just hated to leave all her friends whom she's known since kindergarten. Plus she just got her driver's license and was promised a car! But that all seems to be thrown to the wind.

"I assure you this is for your and your family's own protection. I'll explain the rest on the way to New York. And I know it will be difficult to leave all your friends, but you'll have two weeks before school starts for the second semester to get to know all the other students at the mansion."

She laughed a bit at the irony of what he just said. "You read my mind, I was just thinkin' about havin' to leave my friends." This bit of humor put her in brighter spirits, until the she heard what the man next to him said next.

"Yeah, he has a way of doing that." He said with a bit of a smirk.

"Huh?"

"Miss. Lena, I did read your mind. That's one of my mutant abilities. Logan here has the same abilities as you do from what your mother told me."

"Oh, ok… do a lot of mutants have the same… stuff or abilities?" She didn't really know what to call it. Up 'til now she had only heard it be called a mutation.

"On some rare occasions, yes, but they are usually only similar and not identical. But as for you, Logan, and another student in my institute, you three have identical powers."

Powers? There's another word for it. Lena decided she liked that word better; it sounded cool, kind of like Michel's comic books.

"So why do we have identical powers if that doesn't really happen?"

Well there it is, Logan thought, the million dollar question. This is the moment of truth. He had hoped he would get to tell her on the Blackbird in mid air so there was no going back. But it doesn't matter, if he has to drag her to New York, then so be it.

"Miss. Lena, you may want to take a seat." Xavier suggested. Lena walked to the far end and sat on the porch swing followed by Professor X and Logan, who leaned against the porch railing. "Now what I'm about to tell you will come as a bit of a shock and I want you to be prepared." Lena nodded to indicate she was ready. "The reason you and another student have identical powers is because you two are twins, she is you sister." Xavier said slowly. "And the reason you and Logan have the same powers is because—"

"I'm your real father." Logan spat out. He just knew Xavier was going to say clone, so he had to beat him to the punch. He stopped leaning and bent down in front of her to look her in the eyes. The look she had on her face was hard to translate. She was clearly shocked, but whether she was shocked and angry or shocked and happy; it was hard to tell. Logan took this moment to look her over. She had his eye and hair color, but her hair was long and half curly, just wavy. Her face was oval like Laura's but her cheeks where sharp like his where Laura's rounded out. She was much taller than Laura; nearly half a foot taller. Then she stood up and he stood up too. She was maybe an inch taller than him.

Suddenly she shoved him hard, "Why did you get rid of me!" Tears where rimming her eyes. Ever since she found out she was adopted she had always wondered why her parents abandoned her. What was so wrong with her that they saw unsuitable to keep? And now she finds out that she has a twin sister who, as far as she could tell had always been with their father.

"Listen kid, I didn't get rid of you. I didn't even know you existed until yesterday. But believe me, as soon as I found you out and what kind of danger you're in, I was pushing people out of the way to get here. I only found out about your sister, Laura, about a year ago and it took forever to get her to come to the institute. She's only been there for 3 weeks and she's there for the same reason I'm asking you to be there: for protection and for the chance to get to know you. You're luckier than she and I, you where able to grow up with a family that loves you. She was never around anyone that loved her and I can't even remember if I had a family. But I am jumping at the chance to be able to call not just one daughter, but two. So understand that if I had known you where born and up for adoption I would've came down here to get you myself."

She let one tear fall then she looked away from him and stared though the window next to her into the kitchen where her adopted father still sat. She made up her mind. She would give this man and sister a chance. After growing up with four brothers she liked the idea of a sister. "Ok." She said looking back at him. "But don't expect me to call you dad. That spot's been taken."

"Fair enough." Then he went back to his position of leaning on the railing. Lena walked back inside to finish packing leaving Professor Xavier and Logan outside. "Sorry to cut you off, Charles. I don't think she would look at anyone the same if you had said she was a clone of me."

"That's quite alright, Logan. I was going to say that you are her father, but I think you handled it quite well."

"I am curious Charles. Who is it that Henry used to work for?"

"I believe his real name is Luke Carson, also known as Agent Carson. He was a double agent for both HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. The rest is a bit of a mystery, but I believe Nick Fury has made regular visits here to check on Lena."

"Seriously? That makes this a whole different ball game. She won't ever be able to come back will she?"

"No, I'm afraid not. She and Laura will have to stay close to us for the rest of their lives."

Logan chuckled a bit. "All of a sudden we're the Mutant Witness Protection Program."

"I think in a way we've always been."

"But we've just had to kick it up a notch." They started to make their way back inside. "There's just one thing I still don't understand. If S.H.I.E.L.D. is after her why did Fury tell us how to find her?"

"There is more to Nick Fury than meets the eye. Though we do not know of his reasons, I have a feeling we will find out in due time."

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A few hours later after all of Lena's necessary possessions where packed Logan helped her load her three suitcases of clothes, one suitcase of shoes, and a smaller suitcase of beauty and personal hygiene products into the car. Logan was thankful that she didn't have as many bags as Kitty did when she moved in. That mountain was a nightmare in itself!

After everything was loaded and ready to go the goodbyes where in order. Logan had seen this a thousand times, but none where like or as personal as this one. This was a permanent goodbye. She would never be able to see this family again and they didn't even know it. Henry, as he is now called, knew it though. He knew he would have to break the news to his wife once his only daughter had left.

"Goodbye, princess." Betty wept as she hugged and kissed Lena.

Rodney was the only brother who stayed to see her off. Luke and DJ said goodbye earlier and already left. Michel of course was still in his room. "See ya later Tator Tot." He said jokingly.

"You too Rim Rod. You better email me or somethin'."

"I bet the first thing you email me once you get will go somethin' like, 'OMG WTF it's cold!'"

"L-O-L." She said mockingly.

Betty leaned to her husband and said, "Sometimes I wonder what those letters mean, and other times, I'm glad I don't."

She gave her brother one last hug and went to her adopted dad. "Bye, dad. I'll miss you."

He hugged her and said, "I'll miss you too." Then he whispered in her ear, "Baby girl, I'm sorry, but you can't ever come back." She nodded her head in understanding.

Soon they were finally on their way. Lena rode in the back with the professor. She didn't say anything, just looked down at her hands. When they came to the end of the long drive way she noticed that Logan turned right. "Unless you plan on drivin' all the way to New York, the airport's the other way."

"I have a private jet just down the road." The professor assured her.

"But there's nothin' down this road but fields… No way, you parked a jet in a field?"

The professor only chuckled a bit. "Ah, here we are." Logan drove the car an empty corn field and stopped.

Lena looked around from inside the car, but could see no jet. "Uhh… I think someone high jacked your jet." But as soon as she said that, a huge black jet appeared seemingly out of nowhere. "Oh, there it is." At this point everything was so weird that it hardly surprised her. She half way thought she was dreaming anyway.

A hatch at the bottom of the jet opened into a ramp and Logan drove up it into the huge aircraft. He opened the door for Xavier and placed the ramp for him and Lena followed after. She looked around her and assumed she was in the cargo hold. She only had a few moments to take in her surroundings because they lead her through a door into what she could only describe as the front. Logan took the pilot's seat in the cock pit and the professor's wheelchair was locked in behind him. Lena was about to take a seat in the back when Logan called for her. "Hey, kid. Have you ever ridden up front in an airplane before?"

"Once in a helicopter."

"Well now you get to learn how to fly a jet. You might have to fly this baby sometime."

Lena was nervous and excited all at once. She took a seat next to her biological father and strapped herself in. She listened and watched carefully to his instructions and what he did.

"First you flip the ignition switch, then let the thrusters heat up and then…" She watched him and tried to follow along the best she could, but she was lost somewhere between thrusters and the tenth button pushed. He finally looked at her to make sure she was paying attention and saw the completely confused look on her face. "You're not following this at all are you?"

"When I told you 'once in a helicopter' I told you all I knew about flyin'."

"Well… just watch and try to get an idea of it. You _will_ have to learn this sometime. You can't do worse than Bobby."

"Who?"

"You'll see. And you'll do good not to hang around with him."

"Umm…ok."

They only seemed to be flying for a couple of hours when Logan told her they were flying over Ohio. She knew they going fast but exactly how fast? She couldn't believe they were already over Ohio. "We should be there in about thirty minutes." That was welcomed news because she was starting to get a little air sick. They were pulling to many g's that her stomach could handle. But none the less she did her best to hold it in and act like it didn't bother her. It was an act that she had managed to perfect all her life. She had always had the mind set that if something hurt act like you didn't feel it.

Sure enough about thirty-five minutes later she nearly had the life scared out of her thinking Logan was going to crash the jet into a cliff, but to her surprise and relief it opened up to allow passage.

After they were finally off the jet she and Logan unloaded her bags on to a cart that she wheel to her room. They stepped into an elevator that took them to the ground level. Logan and the professor stepped out and Lena attempted to follow, but she was stopped by the professor. "You may want to take your things to your room first. It's on the second floor, fifth door on the left down the hall way to your right. Here is your key and we'll be in the foyer so you can meet your sister." She nodded as the elevator door closed between them.

"_Laura, please meet Logan and I in the foyer. There is someone we would like you to meet._"

Lena pushed her cart into the hall and began counting doors. "_1…2…3…4…_" "Five," she said aloud. She unlocked the door and pushed it open. Turning the cart to enter she realized that there was no way it would fit so she tried to turn it back around, but the wheel stuck and the cart tipped over spilling her luggage and some of her clothes. "You've got to be kiddin' me." She said under her breath and bent down and tried to stuff her clothes back in the proper place.

"Need a hand." She looked up to see a tall young man around her age with spiky blonde hair and dark blonde bangs that curved up. Her powers must be shorting out again because she didn't hear or smell him walk up.

"Yeah, thanks." She quickly snatched one of her bras that had fallen out too and stuffed in with the rest of her clothes blushing a bit that her underwear was in plain sight.

The blonde boy grabbed the four heavier bags and tried to make it through the door with them which wasn't happening with them at his sides. In one desperate motion he swung one arm to the front and the other to the back and stumbled into the room as fast as he could without falling from all the extra weight. She walked in behind him with the smaller bag and thanked him. He tried his best not to look like he was breathing so hard.

"Thanks again for helpin' me, but I've got to get to the foyer to meet Logan and the professor." And she walked out the door.

"Hey wait up, I'll show where it is." He caught up beside her and said, "So you new here?" Immediately he thought, "_Idiot, of course she's new here. You nearly killed yourself with her bags!_"

But she didn't seem to mind the obvious. "Yeah, we just flew in."

"Oh, that's cool. Where from?"

"Texas. I'm Lena by the way."

"Oh, sorry. I'm Berzerker."

"Berzerker? Bless you heart."

"Oh, no, that's not my real name. My real name is Ray Crisp. Berzerker is my X-Man name." He said proudly. He had worked hard to rise to the title of X-Man and away from being called 'new mutant'.

"What's an X-Man? Is that like some online internet game?" She laughed.

"No no!" He was sinking fast. She probably thought he was more of a geek by the minute. "The X-Men are what the experienced mutants here are called. I guess you could say we fight the baddies." '_Baddies? Who says baddies? I should never do the recruiting._'

"Umm… ok." Ok so this guy was kind of cute. A bit weird, but cute.

When they entered the foyer she saw a young girl standing next to Logan and the professor eyeing her intensely. The look she was giving her made Lena a bit uncomfortable. The professor broke the silence first. "Laura, this is Lena your twin sister."

"Twin sister?" Ray said. "No offence Professor X, but they don't look like twins to me. Lena even looks older than Laura."

"That would be because of the healing factor and also why Lena is so much taller." The Professor said. The two girls stepped forward and met each other in the middle. Lena was much taller than Laura; nearly half a foot taller. "The healing factor counteracts age and in turn, growth. Because Laura's took effect years ago, she is shorter and stopped growing." '_And I want no one to tell Lena she is a clone. I will tell her later.'_ The professor said telepathically to everyone in the room, minus Lena.

Laura continued to glare up a Lena before finally saying, "I hate you!" and shoved by her too her room.

"Some family reunion, Charles." Logan said. "Maybe they shouldn't room together."

"For the time being, they're room mates."

So Laura hates Lena. I wonder why?... Please review if you have the time! : )


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